Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the UN, United States

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Security Council: Statement by Ambassador Herman Schaper on the issue of the “Security Council open debate on working methods”

Security Council: Statement by Ambassador Herman Schaper on the issue of the “Security Council open debate on working methods”

26/11/2012

Statement by H.E. Ambassador Herman Schaper

Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the United
Nations

on behalf of the Netherlands and Belgium

to the Security Council

on the issue of the “Security Council open debate on working methods”

New York, 26 November 2012

Mr. President,

I have the honour to address the Council on behalf of the Netherlands and
Belgium.

First of all, I would like to thank India, as President of the Security
Council, for convening this debate and preparing the concept note. We would also
like to express our gratitude to Portugal, which organized the previous open
debate in 2011. The President of the Working Group on Documentation and other
Procedural Questions has been a driving force behind this important topic.

Mr. President,

Belgium and the Netherlands attach great importance to this open debate,
which provides the wider UN-membership with the opportunity to interact with the
Security Council members on this matter. We feel a strong sense of urgency to
make progress on the improvement of the working methods - and on broader
Security Council reform, for that matter. As said before, we think it is high
time to enhance the Security Council’s accountability to the wider membership,
and to increase the transparency, the legitimacy and effectiveness of its
decisions.

In our view concrete results on this issue can only be achieved through a
meaningful dialogue between the UNSC and the General Assembly. This is the path
we should follow, and today’s debate is an excellent example of how we should
proceed. We fully share the statement at the very beginning of the concept note
that working methods I quote ‘concern the UN member states as a whole’ unquote.

Besides, in recent years, real and encouraging improvements have already been
made, as is also explained in your concept note. The working methods debates
have already produced results, and it is good to remind ourselves that today the
Council is operating under other, better, and more transparent working methods
than before. The Netherlands and Belgium would like to commend both the
permanent and the successive elected Members of Council for their efforts in
this regard.

The Netherlands and Belgium want to stress this fact, because we do not want
the further development of better working methods to become hostage to a lack of
progress on the wider debate about Security Council reform.

In May, we witnessed the withdrawal of the initiative of the S5 on the
improvement of the working methods of the Security Council. At that point in
time the permanent members of the Security Council indicated that they were
ready to seriously consider the recommendations put forward in the S-5
draft-resolution. Belgium and the Netherlands hope that they will do so.

Mr. President,

We studied the Indian concept note that was sent to us in preparation of this
debate. It contains an interesting overview of recent events and repeatedly
stresses the right principles: this debate should lead us to real and concrete
measures that simultaneously enhance transparency, efficiency and interactivity
within the Council and with the wider membership.

In your concept note you invite the wider membership to come up with a range
of practical suggestions that could make a difference in the day-to-day Security
Council business. You then sum up a list of concrete and operational ideas, some
of which have actually been put forward by the Netherlands and Belgium during
the previous debate in 2011.

We welcome those suggestions in the Indian paper aimed at increasing the
involvement of States and other parties, non-members of the Security Council, in
the Council’s work, especially the suggestions that aim at enhancing the
participation of the chairs of the country-specific configurations of the
Peacebuilding Commission, and of the troop and police contributing countries in
relevant debates and discussions. We also support the proposal of a more
flexible use of meeting formats available, such as Arria formula meetings or
informal interactive dialogues.

Furthermore, we support the suggestions made on increasing the transparency
and inclusivity of the work of the Security Council’s subsidiary bodies.

We would also like to repeat our plea to improve country-specific debates by
inviting the country at stake in the discussions. Countries that are being
debated but that are not a member of the Council, should be invited to
contribute to Council debates at a moment when they really matter and under a
formula to be decided on an ad hoc basis. By doing so, the Council would give a
fair and decent chance to countries to put their point of view forward. After
hearing such a country, the Council can still discuss the issue at stake in a
restricted debate among its members, without the country concerned being
present.

We also see merit in the proposal to promote more and more interactive open
debates. The suggestion to invite non Council members to speak among the Council
members, is noteworthy.

At the same we would like to receive further clarification on some of the
other suggestions. The suggestion to enhance the role of the Military Staff
Committee is thought-provoking. It would be interesting to explore whether the
MSC could provide military advice when the Security Council considers the
mandate of a military operation.

Mr. President,

The Netherlands and Belgium truly appreciate the efforts that have been made
so far to improve the working methods of the Security Council. The long list of
ideas and suggestions in your concept note deserves our careful attention and
some of them could and should be swiftly implemented.

In addition to these ideas we would like to underline the importance of the
Council giving continued attention to the cases it has referred to the ICC and
to improve its cooperation with the ICC, as was argued by many delegations
today. We count on the Security Council members, in particular the permanent
members, to make a joint effort together with the wider membership to continue
enhancing the transparency, legitimacy, effectiveness and interactivity of the
Security Council.